How to Co2 cheap?

[cwesto]

I saw on "I Grow Chronic" on youtube the guy sprayed his plants with carbonated water. Doea anybody else know about this or a better way??

If this spraying carbonated water thing does work does neone know what kind of carbonated water i should use?? ie - tonic water, club sota, sugar free, sodium free?

cwesto Reviewed by cwesto on 03-10-2008. How to Co2 cheap? I saw on "I Grow Chronic" on youtube the guy sprayed his plants with carbonated water. Doea anybody else know about this or a better way?? If this spraying carbonated water thing does work does neone know what kind of carbonated water i should use?? ie - tonic water, club sota, sugar free, sodium free? Rating: 5

[cwesto]

? anyone ?

was this a dumb question or somthing?

[Mr. Clandestine]

Not a dumb question, just probably not the greatest idea. I've heard Stinky talk a good bit about 'reverse foliar feeding' whereby growers try to do a good thing by foliar feeding, but end up leeching minerals from the foliage... or something to that effect. She'd obviously be able to explain it much better than I would.

I'm guessing you probably know about the yeast & sugar method, but from what I've gathered, it's practically impossible to regulate how much you emit that way. Still, if you're on a budget, it's an option. I'm holding off until I can get a tank/regulator system going, myself. Plus, it really helps if you can seal the room and also time your exhaust so as not to waste any of the precious gas. I always figured that would be really tough to do with any of the homemade methods of enrichment.

Just my :twocents: worth. Sorry I couldn't have been more help.

[Hennessy1414]

i kno the cheapest method!

if your gro room happens to be in your room where you sleep *cha-ching* Co2 emissions from yours truly:rastasmoke:

[Gilfaethwy]

Hmm, I don't know that much about growing, but I know a bit about chemistry.

Vinegar is weak acetic acid solution. Baking Soda is Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3)

Acetic Acid + Sodium Bicarbonate -> Water + Sodium Acetate + CO2.

Water is obviously harmless.
Vinegar is harmless.
Baking Soda is harmless.
Sodium Acetate is a harmless salt. It's used in chemical handwarmers and stuff, nothing to worry about.
CO2 is what you want.

The Calculations for how much Baking Soda you have to decompose to make the desired amount of CO2 are relatively simple

[Hennessy1414]

Hmm, I don't know that much about growing, but I know a bit about chemistry.

Vinegar is weak acetic acid solution. Baking Soda is Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3)

Acetic Acid + Sodium Bicarbonate -> Water + Sodium Acetate + CO2.

Water is obviously harmless.
Vinegar is harmless.
Baking Soda is harmless.
Sodium Acetate is a harmless salt. It's used in chemical handwarmers and stuff, nothing to worry about.
CO2 is what you want.

The Calculations for how much Baking Soda you have to decompose to make the desired amount of CO2 are relatively simple

ahh true true :detective1:
but how much cO2 can a couple of grams of all that really make? :rastasmoke:

[Rusty Trichome]

I saw on "I Grow Chronic" on youtube the guy sprayed his plants with carbonated water. Doea anybody else know about this or a better way??
If this spraying carbonated water thing does work does neone know what kind of carbonated water i should use?? ie - tonic water, club sota, sugar free, sodium free?

I saw those videos a few years back, and thought I too would give it a try using seltzer water. If your goal is to find all the ants, gnats and other bugs in your house, it's a great technique. They love the stuff.

It also makes everything very sticky. Is a bitch to clean off the mylar, pots...even had some overspray land on the lamps. (may want to turn off the fans before spraying, by the way, lol)
I haven't felt the need to repeat the experiment.

Overall...too messy and I saw no positive results, but only used it a couple of times, and at full strength. If you do try it, I recommend rinsing the leaves not long after spraying. I'm pretty sure the sticky residue isn't good for plant respiration or transpiration. Perhaps at a diluted concentration would work better, but every time you open the bottle, or pour some out, aren't you diluting the CO2 concentration even more? (evaporation)

[stinkyattic]

The baking soda/acetic acid method is practical if you can rig up a tray of baking soda and a very controlled slow drip onto it from a bottle of vinegar.

Yeast, sugar, and water also make CO2 during the fermentation process.

Seltzer water should leaved no residue- you were probably using tonic water or something with sugar in it- but is not a good idea, as you can indeed leach nutes out of the leaves if you overdo it.

Those are the short-money options... but the ECONOMICAL option is a proper CO2 tank and regulator in a sealed room. Additional CO2 is nearly worthless if you don't already have your technique and grow area optimized.

[Rusty Trichome]

:stoned: Could have been tonic water. Was a few years ago.

In a large growroom (approx. 1000 cubic ft) with plenty of ventilation, would adding a CO2 set-up be worth the investment?

[stinkyattic]

With ventilation? You'll ventilate yourself into the poorhouse!
Read the Tranoble 'Sealed Room 3 lbs a light" thread.